


Angel Blue

by cruciomysoul



Category: Marvel, Marvel (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe, X-Men (Movieverse), X-Men: First Class (2011) - Fandom
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, F/M, Pregnancy, in which charles and raven departed on amicable terms, sibling relationships are great and should be treasured
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-06-27
Updated: 2014-06-27
Packaged: 2018-02-03 07:54:27
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,414
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1737050
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/cruciomysoul/pseuds/cruciomysoul
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>When Raven turns up on Charles’s doorstep, almost 10 years later and on the verge of labour, he honestly doesn’t know what to tell the students.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Angel Blue

**Author's Note:**

> first time writing anything Marvel~ i'm venturing into _new territory_

Neither Scott, nor Jean, recognised the blonde woman at the door of Charles's former home, his new found school for the gifted. It wasn't until she managed to gasp out a harsh, "I need my brother,  _now._ " That the realisation dawned on them.

This was Raven, the girl from the portraits. Her hair was no longer long, like it was the photograph of her and Charles, but it was still that same blonde tint.

She hand an arm wrapped possessively around her stomach - her large, baby filled stomach - and was leaning against the door frame. Jean wasted no time n ushering her inside, an arm around her waist as she helped the woman walk, telepathically telling Scott to go and find the professor.

Jean helped her into the nearest bedroom they could find, letting the woman - Raven, if she remembered correctly - settle herself down on the covers.

In what seemed like record time, Charles and Scott were soon in the room, the professor's face a mix of shock and brief, brief disappointment before he masked it, almost gliding over to her.

"Raven," He said softly, smiling. Raven smiled back, but it was cut short by a wince as another contraction passed through her body. "I didn't know," Charles was still speaking softly, and ran a hand up through her short locks. "You've changed your hair."

"I'm a bit too old for the long hair now," She replied, "And also a little busy." The professor blinked, as though he was too caught up in seeing his sister again to remember the reason why she was here, and suddenly focused back in, all rapt and attentive.

"Yes, of course." He nodded, "How far apart are your contractions?"

"About 10 minutes, or so. But they're getting shorter."

"Why didn't you go to a hospital, instead of here?" Charles couldn't really tell Scott off for his question. He didn't know, but that didn't stop Charles from answering rather tersely.

"Raven is a mutant. Surely you can understand that there might be certain -  _dangers_  in giving birth surrounded by normal people."

"Normal people," Raven scoffed, trying to laugh. "Really, Charles," She drawled, face contorting into something akin to pain.

_It must be hard,_  Charles told her,  _For you to keep your concentration whilst being in pre-labour._

_It is._

Charles' lip lifted up a little at the edge, and he took Raven's hand in a warm hold.

"Raven, you are amongst friends here, you do not have to hide," Charles reassured her, and with one long look at him, chest heaving and teeth almost gritted, she nodded slowly.

Relaxing, she felt the comfortable transformation of the blue scaled flicking back into place. Charles squeezed her hand, comforting enough to blow any doubts away that she had.

That comfort was short lived, however, when Jean and Scott reacted. "Mystique?" She wasn't sure which one of them said it louder, or with more distaste, but that wasn't very important.

"Raven." Charles corrected them, almost instantly, a harshness to his tone that neither student had heard before. "And I would appreciate it, Scott, Jean, if the two of you could stop gaping like a pair of idiots and fetch us what we need to help deliver this child safely."

With a hesitant, and heavily scandalised look at each other, Scott and Jean did just as the professor asked.

When they returned, they were not any better off prepared. "Professor," Jean began, cautious, "I don't think having her here is a good idea-"

"Do not tell me what is or isn't a good idea, Jean."

"Hey!" Scot protested, "She's just concerned for your safety- we both are, I mean, Mystique is-"

"Mystique is Raven, and she is my sister. Furthermore, I-" Charles was cut off by a pained noise from Raven,

"Charles," She panted, clutching at his hand, "I think- I think..." She didn't have to continue her sentence.

* * *

 

After what seemed like hours, it was soon just Charles, Raven, and the newborn left in the room. It had not been as difficult as Charles had imagined, and probably the worst of it was convincing Jean and Scott to give them sum much needed privacy ("But professor-!" "But nothing, Jean, she is my sister and I would very much like some time alone with her now. You can wait outside the door with Scott if it sates your completely unnecessary worries.")

Raven supposed she should feel happy, and relieved, and she was, don't get her wrong- just something was nagging at her, a little titbit of information that Charles had mentioned.

"You still consider me your sister," She breathed, cradling the little ball in her chest.

"Of course," Charles answered easily, dismissively. "I still have the family portrait up in the library, too. Perhaps," He paused, looking between the newborn and her mother, "One day we can add another."

Raven didn't respond, but Charles could feel the happiness radiating off of her- well, maybe not happiness, but it was certainly contentment. 

But then the real happiness kicked in, and Raven looked delightedly on at her child.

"She's not blue," Raven exhaled, a crushing weight she hadn't known the presence of dispersing out from her. "She isn't blue," She repeated, almost as though she couldn't believe it, an excited- no,  _relieved_  breath bubbling up inside of her. She could laugh, she really wanted to laugh.

"No," Charles agreed, amused by Raven's reaction, "She isn't." He gently took the baby off her then, allowing her the opportunity to rest, and holding, for the first time, his niece.

"Oh, thank God," Raven murmured, closing her eyes, letting her head fall backward against the headboard. "Thank God."

"I suppose," Charles wondered aloud, "I don't have to ask you who the father is." With her eyes still closed, Raven shook her head. "Rave-"

"He doesn't know," She blurted out, eyes snapping open and her body shooting upward. She winced; the motion was painful for her otherwise exerted body. "Charles," She almost whimpered, "Charles, you can't tell him. Please,"

If Charles looked like anything, it was a deer caught in the headlights. A man stuck at the cross roads. Eric was his oldest friend. Raven was his sister. It was no contest between the two, he  _knew_  that, but still... this was Eric's child, his  _daughter_ , and he didn't even  _know..._

"It was easy to hide the pregnancy," Raven had started babbling, "You know, being a shape shifter and all. And we don't actually spend that much time together, but Charles- Charles, what am I going to do? I can't just show up with a kid.

"Besides! It's not exactly a child friendly environment. It's a battlefield, Charles, we live in constant disarray. I can't bring a child up like that!"

"Raven," Whispered Charles, "Why didn't you get an abortion?" His voice held a clear note of sorrow, almost dejection- and one other thing: pity.

Guilt flashed over her face, but as quick it had appeared, it was concealed again, leaving behind just Raven, small and broken as the day she had arrived at the manor oh so many years ago now.

"I tried," she answered, "On several occasions. But I-" She paused, and Charles loathed himself for making her cry, for making that tear roll down her cheek, "I just  _couldn't_ , Charles. I couldn't bring myself to go through with it." Charles nodded; he could understand that. Raven was kind. The others may not know it, or believe it, but his sister was.

"What am I going to do?" The words were muffled by her hands - now covering her entire face - but Charles heard them well enough.

Charles was silent for a moment, until:

"You could stay here," He suggested, quietly, words precise. Raven peeked at her through her fingers, before peeling them away from her face, slowly.

"I can't," Another set of tears trickled down her cheeks, "I can't leave Erik." Charles nodded. Of course, he already knew that. When hadn't Raven chosen Erik over family?

"Then," And Charles deliberated here, because what he was suggesting next sounded ludicrous to even his own ears. "Leave the child here. With me. You could come and visit all you like, of course. I won't deny you that, or keep any secrets from the child."

Raven looked at him as though he had just ordered something akin to the Nuclear destruction of America himself. 

"You'd-" Raven faltered, struggling to find her voice, "You'd honestly do that?" Charles found himself nodding solemnly,

"Of course." His voice was grave, and then something else occurred to him. "Here would also be the safest place for her, I'm positive."

Curiosity over took her, clear in her features, and Raven felt compelled to ask "Why?"

"Well," Charles explained, handing the baby back to Raven as she sat up, thumb passing over the small cheek in a stroking motion as the babe exchanged hands, "Even though the mutant X-gene is present at random, I would find it very surprising, that with such powerful and diverse mutants like yourself and Erik as parents, if this child did not possess the gene."

"So you're saying..." Raven trailed off, using her head to indicated to herself. Her blue self. Charles promptly shook his head,

"No," He disagreed, "I'm not saying she'll turn out blue. It's a possibility, of course it is, because the mutation will be unknown until it manifests, but it could just as easily be something internal, like Erik's magnetism manipulation or-"

"Or her uncle's telepathy." Charles smiled, chuckling a little.

"Or yes, quite like that."

They sat in a comfortable, quiet tranquillity for a few moments, both observing the child.

* * *

 

Outside the door, both Scott and Jean were standing guard. "If you glare any more," Jean muttered, speaking to Scott but not looking at anywhere but the floor, "You are going to burn a hole right through those glasses. And the whole building.  _Literally._ "

Scott shrugged. He didn't really have an answer for her. Not that he had time to answer, anyway, because giant, hairy blue feet were suddenly walking towards them.

"What's going on?" Hank's voice was filled with suspicion as he eyed the two stood outside the door, and his eyes narrowed slightly. He generally didn't agree with something happening at the mansion that he wasn't aware of. Especially if it concerned the professor.

"Mystique is the professor's sister," Scott explained, bitterly at that, "Who knew?"

" _Scott,_ " Jean hissed, because really, he shouldn't be speaking to Hank like that, Hank was like a professor in his own right- Hank waved his hand dismissively, in a sort of "don't worry about it" gesture. But it didn't stop Hank from frowning, or letting out a reluctant sigh.

"Actually," Hank said, ignoring Jean's look of utter suspicion, because that girl had a mind as sharp as the professor's and had undoubtedly cottoned on to Hank's reaction- or lack thereof. "I knew that."

At their looks of stunned indignation, Hank merely shrugged. "It's... complicated," He wagered, and then added quickly: "And also not my story to tell." Hank paused a moment, looking between the two. "Is she still here?"

They both nodded, and Scott jerked his thumb towards the door. "I see," Hank hummed, "And what was the reason for her visit? I don't believe they've spoken for quite some time. I know I certainly haven't." Hank gave them 'the look' then, the one commonly associated with teenagers who  _know_  they have been caught eavesdropping, despite it never being outright stated. Scott fidgeted uncomfortably.

At times like these, Hank found it incredibly difficult to believe Scott and Alex were ever related, let alone brothers. They were just so vastly different.

"She's-" Jean started, paused, gritted her teeth, and then continued, "pregnant. In labour. Had a bab- hey!"

Hank had shoved his way past the two - he'd apologise for that later - and barged into the room.

The noise was enough to startle the baby into crying, though Charles didn't seem particularly surprised. A faint shushing could be heard from Raven, whilst the professor asked Scott and Jean to politely close the door.

"So it's true, then." Hank stated, the door now shut. He didn't quite know how he felt at that moment. Whether it was annoyance, or betrayal, or something else.

"Hey, Hank," Raven had mustered up the strength for a smile, and her voice sounded almost awestruck, the child in her arms no longer making a sound.

"Raven." Hank started toward her, but then a few steps in faltered slightly, and then seemed to regain himself.

"I should have knocked," Hank admitted, back pedalling towards the door. It was difficult to tell with all the hair, but Raven supposed he looked apologetic.

"Yes, you should have." Raven retorted, to which Hank nodded at and continued moving backward. She rolled her eyes, and just as Hank turned his back to open the door, called out:

"Hey, Bozo," Hank's hand paused at the door, and she's pretty sure she saw the corner of Charles's mouth twitch upward, "Come over here and meet your new Godchild."

Hank's hand stopped at the door, and he turned to face her, mouthing a little 'Bozo'. God, he hadn't heard that name in a long time. But then his eyes widened, because of course, Raven had said something else, too. "Godchild?" He repeated, questioning.

Raven nodded, a little hesitant, and Hank drew up a chair on the other side of the bed, so he could face both Raven and the professor. With a quick look at Raven for confirmation, Charles handed the baby over to Hank.

"Oh, she's very lovely," Hank said at once, gently rocking the little baby in his arms. "She has your eyes," He said, and Raven laughed, because if anything was true, then it was the opposite - Raven had the  _baby's_  eyes.

Hank held on for a moment or two longer, before passing the child back to its mother. He didn't really have anything else to say, and it seemed, neither did anyone else, for a while.

"Have you thought of what you're going to name her?"

Raven bit her lip, considering for a moment. "Would it... be disrespectful, to name her... Angel?" She watched Charles visibly swallow, and even Hank seemed to mellow a little bit, and instantly she regretted saying it.

"I think," Charles spoke, slowly, raising his head to look at Raven. A small, almost bitter like smile had spread across his face. "It would be very honourable indeed."

**Author's Note:**

> ah so i started off liking this and then i realised it sounds horrible but im posting it anyway so forgive me


End file.
